OMG.....WOW!!! I've been a golf addict for 30 years. I've accumulated THOUSANDS of pictures and videos, and dozens of books. I thought my OCD had searched out pretty much all the really important swing videos. But...NOPE! I stumbled across this today and I'm just blown away. This was just amazing technology for the time, and I really can't imagine how they pulled it off. I'd like to know much more about the technical aspects of location, positioning, how they powered the camera, getting footage from both sides of "the pond." These are ELITE, extremely efficient, technically sound golf swings. Even as an older man, Vardon is swinging astonishingly well. He could tear up the Senior tour with that move! I've always been struck by the gracefulness of swings of that era. Certainly, there were always players who aspired to "grip it and rip it," but for the most part the emphasis was on a full turn and a more gradual acceleration. No doubt the hickory shafts required this, but it was also an attitude, I believe, that emphasized smoothness and solid contact over trying to blast it out of the country. Much greater hip turn is also a sign of those times. THANK YOU for this upload! Just tremendous footage.
Great to see Joyce Wethered in action. Bobby Jones said she had the best swing he ever saw, man or woman. Good to see Jones and Vardon as well! Thanks for posting.
Just goes to show, it doesn't matter how you swing if the result's are the same, you pointing at your target. Every swing on here is from a champion and lovely to watch.
Elizabeth - Indeed he did, and he went on to say, having played exhibitions with her, that Joyce was the only golfer who made him feel outclassed. Typical warm and generous comment from Bobby.
After playing a series of exhibitions with Wethered in Europe, Jones came back home and when asked, said that he had never felt so outclassed by any golfer. He said Joyce not only never mishit a shot, she never even half mishit a shot.
Ben Hogan said similar things about Mickey Wright. Women must have superior fundamentals as they can't over power the game with strength. I've always admired the great lady players.
There is no question that lady professional golfers have better swings as a rule than the male players. Some of these women are no talker than five foot tall and 100 pounds. Then they strike the bal and it splits the Fairway at 280 yards!! Think of that integration to the size if the male players. The only edge a male player has is physical strength. Simple as that.
I recently watched a video on RU-vid (Swing Myth: Turning In A Barrel) in which a so-called professional said that 'swinging in a barrel' is a myth. Apparently, he never watched this video. The heads of these greats don't move more than a inch or two during their entire swings.
To be fair to that video, it appears they are addressing the idea that the body shouldn't move laterally at all throughout the swing, especially once the downswing starts. In my experience, "swinging/turning in a barrel" is a metaphor that has been overextended and thus lost most of its original meaning, which was to _stay centred_ as you swing _back._ All three golfers pictured are swinging tightly into their right side - you can actually draw a line from their right insteps going directly up their leg and see the "centre line" that they're swinging around. This motion naturally keeps their head and upper body "in place" as they're swinging back and down, and establishes a (mostly) consistent impact position. In both the Swing Myth video and this video, what they _don't_ do is force their bodies to stay in the same place in the follow through to stay "inside" the barrel - all three naturally let their body get pulled through impact and finish with their upper bodies over their left feet. (Bobby Jones in particular at 1:56 actually lets his head fall away from the target a little as he attacks the ball aggressively from the inside with his driver.)
She had a great swing. One thing I've noticed about players from that time is that they really track back on the inside on the back swing then ride their shoulders from the top thus coming over the top a bit. They used their hips a lot which can produce that action unless as Tiger did you drop the club from the top as a drill to teach you the correct action. What a player she was though, amazing!
Miss Wethered, if im not mistaken was a student of Percy Boomer. Interesting philosophy. It has been said it's one of the only golf books Hogan was seen to be reading. They say he's always had a copy of Percy's book with him.
Fascinating. See the way they all lag the club head to start the swing and release it earlier on the downswing than any modern player would due to the hickory shafts.
You have no idea hat you are talking about. I've hit pre-1935 hickory shafted clubs for years and the hitting action through the ball is exactly the same for almost all golfers.
@M Wiggins Many of my friends in VT play with hickory shafted pre-1935 clubs on a 5800 yard course. At least six shoot in the 70s. Go soak your lame head.
